Here’s India’s first train with a glass ceiling. And it looks spectacular!

The Indian Railways just upped its travel game last week with this unique see-through ‘Vistadome’ coach that aims to provide nothing less than delightful views to travellers from India and across the world. The trial run of the Vistadome coaches was flagged off by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu. With the launch, the Indian Railways, and more importantly brand ‘India’, looks set to receive a huge boost as it plans to shed its worn-out, old image for a new, vibrant one. As of now, the coaches will be part of the Vishakhapatnam-Kirandul passenger train and will ply between Vishakhapatnam and Araku.

This specially-designed air-conditioned coach, which is touted to be one-of-a-kind on Indian Railways, carries large glass windows and a unique observation lounge that will offer a panoramic view of the landscape running along with 128-km route from Visakhapatnam to Araku valley hill station.

Besides that, one unique feature of this Rs 3.38 crore, 40-seat coach is the double-wide reclining passenger seats that according to Indian Railways can be rotated 360 degrees for an enhanced sightseeing experience.

The railway release also mentioned the fact that the coach also comes with a glass-domed ceiling, automatic sliding doors and a multi-tier luggage rack. With the new Vistadome coaches, travellers can relax in their seats while they enjoy a breathtaking view of the Anantagiri ghat section, Borra caves, Lambasingi, and the numerous tunnels that come along the route.

Another nifty feature is that the glass-ceiling can be electronically-controlled to make it transparent to get an outside view. The coaches will also be equipped with LED lights and a GPS. In a bid to make the coaches more differently-abled friendly, it comes with facilities such as wide side doors and auto sliding compartment doors as well.

At the time of writing the story, only one coach is attached to the passenger train on a trial basis. More will be added soon. While this might be the first-of-its-kind, a similar coach would be introduced later on a route in northeast as well.

During the launch, the railway minister shared a series of tweets showing the unique features and photos of the Vistadome coaches. “The vistadome coaches’ unique offering which will enable tourists to enjoy scenic beauty not only at destination but also along the journey,” Prabhu said in a tweet.